Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1887-12-16
ways THINK OF me as kindly Is I tainx Of

ways rhinS OF ne as Kndiy Is think Of
him.
On the morrow / saw Curtis, and Nylep-
tina with him. and he told me the whole
history of what had happened since Um-
slopo2aas and galloped wildly away from
the battle to save the life of the Q:een. 1t
seemed to me that he had managed the
thing exceedingly well. and showed great
ability as a general. OF course, however,
our loss had been dreadfully heayy-in-
deed. am afraid TO say how many perish
ed in the desperate battle have described
but know that the slaughter has appreci-
ably affected the male population of the
country. He was very pleased TO see me,
dear fellow that he was, and thanked me
with tears in his eyes for the little l had
been able to do. | saw him, however,
start violently when his eyes fell upon my
face.
AS for Nyleptha, she was positively radi-
ant now that her dear lord" had come
back with no other injury than an ugly
scar on his forehead | do not believe that
she allowed all the fearful slaughter that
had taken place to weigh ever so little in
the balance against this one fact, or even
to greatly diminish her JOY; and l cannot
blame her for IL, seeing that 1t Is the ma
ture of loving woman to look at all things
through the spectacles of her love. and lit
Tie does she reck of the misery of the many
IN the happiness of the one be assured.
Thatsis human nature, which the Positty-
1t is all right.
And what art thou going to do with So
rais?n ] asked her
Instantly her bright brow darkened to a
frown.
''Sorais." she said, with a little stamp o.
the foot, ''ah, but Soraisr'
Sir Henry hastened to turn the subject.
you will soon be about and all right
again now, old fellow" he said.
! shook my head and laughed.
Don't deceive yourselves" | said. 81
may he about for little, but I shall never
be all right again. | am n dying man,
Curtis. / may,die slow, but die I must
Do you know, / have been splitting blood
all the morning. | tell you, there is some
thing working away into ray lung. | can
feel it. There, don't look distressed; |
have had my day, and am ready to 60
Give me the mirror will you? | want to
look at myself"
He made some excuse but | saw through
It and insisted, and at last he handed me
one of the discs of polished silver set in
wooden frame like a hand-screen, which
serve as looking glasses in Zu-Vendis. |
looked and put il down.
"Ah." said quietly, 81 thought 50, and
you talk Of my getting all rightP' | did
not like to let them see how shocked real
" was at my own appearance Ny gTiZ-
Zled, stubby hair was turned snow-white,
and my yellow face was shrunk like an
aged woman's, and had two deep, purple
rings painted beneath the eyes.
Here Nyleptha began to cry, and Sir
Henry again turned the subject, telling me
that the artists had taken "A cast of the
dead body of old Umslopogaas, and that
great statue in black marble was to be
erected OF him in the act of splitting the
sacred stone, which was to be matched by
another statue in white marble of myself
and the horse Daylight as he appeared
when. at the termination of that wild ride,
he sank beneath me in the courtyard of
the palace. have since seen these statues,
which at the time of writing this, six
months after the battle, are nearly finished,
and very beautiful they are, especially that
of UmslOpogaas, which is exactly like him.
AS for that of myself, it is good, but they
have idealized my ugIy face Il little, which
Is, perhaps, rs well, seeing that thousands
of people will probably look at it in the
centuries TO come, and it is not pleasant to
look at ugly things.
Then they told me that UmslOpogaas'
last wish had been carried out, and that,
instoud of being cremated, rs | shall be
after tho usual custom here, he had been
tied up, Zulu fashion, with his knees be-
meath his chin, and, having been wrapped
in thin sheet Of beaten gold, entomDed
in n hole followed out of the masonry of
the semi-cirCular space ut the top of the
stair he defended so splcndidly, which
faces, rs far ~ We can Judge, almost exz
aCtIy toward ZulUland. There ne SIts, ana
Will SlJ borrower, lOf lhey cnlDdIflel MIN
with spices, and put him In an air-tight
Golfer, keeping his grim watch beneath the
spot he held alone against IL multitude;
and the people say that at night his ghost
rises and stands shaking the phantom OF
Inkosiknasi mt phantom foes. Certainly
they fear during the dark hours to pass tue
place where the hero is buried.
Oddly enough, too, IL new legend or
prophecy has arisen IN the land IN that I'M
accountable way in wf!Ca such jAlngS do
arise amGuS barbarou3 and Srn!--ivi lied
people, blowing, !iSe the win /, no man
knows from whence. Ac"ur iiLS to this
saying, SO Ion 1S the o!i Hulu sis there,
looking down tie HtHrWay ne defended
when alive, 50 ipn viii the new ii usa of
the Stairway, spIiagIa: from the union of
the Engishman and NyicpthA, endure and
flourish; but when he is taken from thence,
or when, ages after, his bones ut last
crumble into dust, the House shall fall,
and the Stairway shall fall, and the nation
of the Zu-Nendi shall cease to be nation.